The internet is full of helpful resources that outline exactly what you need to know to achieve your goals. You’re reading one of them right now! While there’s a lot of valuable information in these kinds of materials, what they often lack is the reality of many situations. Educational resources like blogs, guides, webinars, and presentations exist in an ideal world where the only thing you’re missing is the knowledge of how to do something, not the means to act on that knowledge.
With that in mind, the final piece of our conversation with Kristi involved a more realistic look at executing a DAM roadmap and moving forward on the spectrum of DAM maturity. We discussed how she makes the most of her limited time, utilizes support from teams like Stacks, and interacts with users to ensure that, despite the real-world difficulties involved in running an enterprise-level DAM program with a small team, she’s able to see the progress she hoped for when developing her roadmap.
If you’re managing a DAM program without the resources you need to execute your strategic roadmap, contact Stacks today! We partner with organizations across industries, sizes, and use cases to facilitate DAM growth and ensure success.
1. Effective Organization and Time Management
With a strategic roadmap to execute, specific goals to achieve with real deadlines, and a large amount of daily and weekly governance tasks to execute, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and let things slip through the cracks. There are only so many hours in a day, and making the most of that time is essential to making progress on your roadmap and keeping your DAM program healthy.
One component of time management has already been covered: tracking tasks and goals in a dynamic project management tool. Along with this, find automations that save time, like metadata presets and integrations. Some DAM platforms have AI tools that can help tag assets, while others have rules you can create for uploads. If you're not sure, ask your DAM vendor what they offer that can help you.
Having a consistent set of workflows surrounding the DAM program and its associated tasks will help you accomplish more with less. If processes are consistent, there are very few surprises.
Tracking the work in an organized way is what has helped me the most. I have a dashboard in our project management tool that shows me everything ready so I have a good overview of the work that needs to be done for that part of my job.
Kristi Morrison-Clear, DAM Manager, SharkNinja
2. Prioritize Tasks and Projects
Tracking your work in an organized manner is just the first step in maximizing your time and resources regarding the DAM program. Once you have a scalable system in place to track goals and tasks, you’ll need to prioritize them based on their relevance, impact on the DAM program, and your ability to get them done.
Many DAM program owners manage many day-to-day tasks, in addition to some big-picture ones. Because of this, it’s easy for them to get caught up in daily tasks, leaving little time for bigger initiatives. This is why they need to set realistic goals that align with both business and department ones.
While it’s important to be optimistic, make sure that your goals are realistic and within reach. Otherwise, you risk feeling burned out or like you’re not accomplishing what you should. Breaking bigger goals into smaller tasks can also help with this. The key is steady, consistent progress that ultimately leads to large gains in ROI and efficiency.
I wanted to add external users into the DAM. That is a BIG goal and encompasses distributors, agencies, and retailers. So, I broke it up even smaller. I started with adding EMEA distributors in certain regions that needed a little extra support. From there, I will expand to other EMEA distributors.
Kristi Morrison-Clear, DAM Manager, SharkNinja
3. Engage with Users
Since users are the heart of the DAM program, as the program owner you have to consistently engage with them, both for training and feedback. While it can feel like an additional burden to schedule these trainings when you're juggling so many other things, users appreciate it. They need to know who to contact for help and will be more willing to use a system that they have a voice in. By showing your users that their feedback is valued, they'll feel more engaged and are more likely to advocate the DAM program when the opportunity arises.
How does involving your users impact your ability to execute your roadmap? Having users who are invested in the DAM program’s success allows you to spend less time dealing with user issues and more time working toward your goals. Maturing your program with a solo librarian or small team IS possible, it just takes time and organization (which we're all good at!)
I monitor logins daily and can elevate access to those who need it. Once I do that, I send them a Teams message welcoming them to the DAM and letting them know to please reach out with questions or any feedback. This first interaction has led to so many great conversations and ideas.
Kristi Morrison-Clear, DAM Manager, SharkNinja
- 01 - Key Takeaways from Stacks' Webinar With SharkNinja
- 02 - Determining the Starting Point: The 5 Stages of DAM Maturity
- 03 - 4 Key Steps to Building a Realistic Roadmap for DAM Growth
- 04 - The Ideal World: 5 Resources You Need to Grow Your DAM Program
- 05 - Getting Real: 3 Ways to Mature Your DAM Program with a Small Team
